Guardian's Halloween
by thefangirldiaries
Summary: Years after LS, Rose and Dimitri are happily married. She is 23 and he is about to turn 30. Alas, In the days leading up to the guardian's Halloween party, strange things are happening to Rose and Dimitri. They have to uncover the truth before they're at the mercy of a murderer. This story is part of the VA10thanniversaryproject!
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note** : Hello everyone! This story is going up a couple days earlier than I planned, so I hope those of you waiting for part two are happy! I'm excited for this story because this is my first shot at horror, AND my first attempt to write a true smut scene. **If you don't want to read the rated M portion, skip from "28th - saturday - dimitri's birthday" to "after"**. For those who do want to read it, let me know what you think! Shoutout to the wonderful author Swimming the Same Deep Waters who was kind enough to read it over and critique it for me (THANK YOU).

Chapter 1 of this story is part of the _VA 10th anniversary project_ , a compilation of themed stories written by amazing authors. The link to their page is on my profile, so go check out the other stories/authors!

If you enjoy the story please follow/favorite/review! - thefangirldiaries

* * *

 **25th - wednesday.**

* * *

Dimitri and I sat in a semi-private corner of the guardian's lounge as we ate our lunch. As the weather cooled down for the year, more and more guardians filled up the lounge around lunchtime. Despite Dimitri and I not being able to talk freely with so many ears around, I enjoyed our time together. Right before we were about to leave, my friend Meredith from St. Vlad's walked in and pushed past the other guardians to target us.

She placed both fists on the table in front of us like she was interrogating us, "Have you seen the mass email yet?" Dimitri and I glanced at each other and shook our heads.

Meredith sighed, "Of course you haven't. Anyway, there's a halloween party on Tuesday for the guardians in the small ballroom. It's starts at 6pm and goes till midnight." I was about to say something but Meredith held up her hand, "I already checked your schedules and neither of you are working, so I'd better see you there."

I looked over to Dimitri, but he wasn't paying attention to us. He was looking at Jovan. Jovan lived and grew up in Moscow, but he's been staying at court for a few weeks while he waits for a new assignment. Jovan's last charge had been brutally killed by Strigoi. I'd seen him frequently at the gym after my shifts, and he always talked my ear off until I made up an excuse to leave. I think he was desperate for friends. I'd only seen Dimitri and Jovan in the same room a few times, but every time I got the feeling Dimitri was scrutinizing him.

Meredith snapped her fingers until Dimitri looked at her. "I'll see you at the party," Meredith commanded. She walked away with a dramatic flip of her hair.

"Don't you think it's weird that we're having a party less than a month after a guardian went missing near the ward lines?" Dimitri asked in a low voice. I shrugged, "That hasn't stopped us from throwing parties in the past. Hey, what's with you and Jovan?"

Now it was Dimitri's turn to shrug, "He just reminds me of this guy I went to St. Basil's with. He got arrested senior year for trying to murder a teacher."

"Shit…" I couldn't hide my shock, I leaned in to keep others from overhearing. "What happened?"

"His name was Alexei. He was in my grade. We were never told the details, but he broke into our history teacher's room during the day and tried strangling her."

"That's insane," I shook my head, "But you can't hate Jovan just because he looks like a guy you used to know."

"I don't hate him, Rose. But the resemblance is uncanny. I'll find a picture and show you."

"Maybe you can dress up as him for the party!"

He groaned. "You're really going to make me go, aren't you?" Dimitri asked forlornly. I kicked his leg under the table, "Of course! We have six days to get good costumes, that's plenty of time. I already know what I want to be."

"What are you going to be?"

"You'll see at the party, until then it's a surprise."

* * *

 **26th - thursday.**

* * *

The gym was crowded tonight, and Dimitri and I had a hard time finding two pieces of equipment next to each other. We had to split up for most of the workout, which sucked, because this was our date night. We tossed our bags on the floor next to everyone else's. The guardian's used the code of honor, which meant the royal budget didn't want to pay for a locker room, and we had to trust that our colleagues wouldn't steal our things at the gym.

I put on headphones and pretended not to notice the people who came up to me to ask me to spar with them. The only person in the gym besides Dimitri that I didn't ignore was Eddie. I grinned when I saw him walking up to me. "Come to get your ass kicked again?" I asked. Eddie rolled his eyes, "I think anyone here would agree that sparring with you is not about winning, because that's impossible. It's about the experience."

I followed him to the ring, which was currently being used, so we had to wait our turn. I could see that it was Jovan and a guardian whose name I didn't know in the ring, and it looked like Jovan was about to win. Eddie nudged my shoulder, "You know, I think that guy has a crush on you."

I whipped my head to Eddie. "Who?" I demanded.

"What'shisname, Jovi. He was here two nights ago and cornered me at the free weights. Kept asking me questions about you and Belikov." I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach. Dimitri already didn't like the guy, and it seemed like he would be around for a while longer.

I crossed my arms over my chest and glanced over my shoulder to make sure nobody, particularly Dimitri, could hear us. "What kind of questions?"

He shrugged nonchalantly. "Whether you two lived together, I told him yes. If you two fight a lot, I told him no… He also asked the best time to catch you at the gym, and I told him to fuck off."

I laughed and patted his shoulder, "I don't know what I would do without you, Edison. Hey…" I lowered my voice, "could you not mention this to Dimitri?"

Eddie flicked his eyes toward me, "Too late, Rose. I just did reps with him and told him what I told you."

"Great," I mumbled sarcastically. "Hey, look, it's our turn for the ring!" Eddie dragged me in. Just like any other time I fought in the ring, I noticed people watching the fight. This time, though, I was acutely aware of Jovan watching me.

* * *

 **27th - friday.**

* * *

Lissa pulled a maroon skirt off the rack. "This one would work!" she exclaimed hopefully. I nodded over my shoulder, "I'll try it on with the brown vest."

She was upset with me earlier for sleeping in and missing most of the time she was free to spend with me, but apparently she was over that now. She even snapped at me, but I wrote that off as stress. She'd had a lot of closed door meetings recently that even I wasn't allowed in, and I would have to wait for her outside the meetings.

I didn't share her stress. I'd been sleeping like a baby for the past week, and I didn't know why, but it's not like I'm going to complain that I'm sleeping well.

This year, Lissa had to experience Halloween vicariously through me, since it would be too dangerous and too improper for the queen to go to a kegger style party. So she kept busy hunting for my halloween costume, and I was busy in the adult section hunting for Dimitri's birthday present. He was turning 29 tomorrow, and I procrastinated in getting him an actual gift.

"So Dimitri doesn't know what your costume is?"

"Nope! And I don't know what he's going as either. We have to find each other at the party, and we can't cheat and tell each other where we are because he lost his phone yesterday."

"Ooh, mysterious and sexy," Lissa giggled under her breath.

I hummed, "I hope so. What do you think of this one?" I held up a blue sheer nightie. Lissa scrunched up her nose, "Blue isn't really your color. What color does Dimitri like?"

"I think as long as I'm not wearing that much he won't care what color it is," I said as I shoved the blue piece back on the rack, thinking the answer was red, red is Dimitri's favorite color on me, but I wanted to keep that to myself for some reason.

We searched for a good hour before my party costume was fully assembled. It was nowhere near as revealing as the lingerie, but it was still sexy in it's own way. I was going as a "steampunk girl", but I looked like a steampunk prostitute. The white lace fringe shirt covered my chest entirely, but the vest pushed up my boobs so much that it didn't matter that they were covered. The shirt came up around the neck and tied in the back to resemble a choker. The brown leather vest had little gears sewn into the fabric like buttons, and had even more lace fringe on the sides and on the shoulders. The deep maroon skirt stopped mid thigh, showing off the fishnet stockings covering my legs down to the brown boots. We found matching earrings with gears dangling down and a miniature top hat to complete the look.

"Damn, Rose. You look like a cowboy's wet dream…" Lissa gasped, "You're wearing this because it's Dimitri's sex fantasy, isn't it!"

I smacked her arm, "Shut up!" I glanced around to make sure no one heard her say that.

"You're blushing! It is!" Lissa accused. I rolled my eyes. "Shut up and help me find some lingerie."

It didn't take long. I found the perfect outfit. It was white lace, and there wasn't a lot of it. Even wearing it I would be considered naked. Both of the outfits I bought made me feel incredibly sexy, and I wondered if I could wait until Dimitri's birthday tomorrow to try the outfit on for him.

* * *

 **28th - saturday - dimitri's birthday.**

* * *

I smoothed down the lace covering my stomach. The tops of my breasts were completely exposed, the small size made my breasts strain against the fabric. My calves were covered by the creamy stockings, with lace bows that clipped to the bottom of my underwear. My thighs were completely exposed, as was the bottom half of my ass and my shoulders. I flipped my hair over my shoulders so that Dimitri would have a clear view of my near naked chest.

Dimitri had complained that he was exhausted and didn't want to do anything for his birthday, but I insisted. He was currently watching a rerun of some fantasy show, since I told him I was putting my makeup on for the dinner reservation.

He'd seen me in sexy outfits so much recently that I needed to kick it up a notch if this time was going to be memorable for the both of us. He probably expected the lingerie at this point. I wanted to provoke him and play with him, and I knew exactly what to do.

I put on cream colored heels and went to the door while keeping myself out of sight.

"Comrade! I have my Halloween costume on. Do you want a sneak peak?" I called out.

He muted the TV. "I thought it was supposed to be a surprise," he said curiously.

"It is. Surprise!" I walked into the living room like I was strutting down a catwalk. I registered the shock on his face before I did a twirl for him. "What do you think?" I asked in a sweet voice. When I faced him again I was pleased to see that he clenched his fist in frustration. He sat there, frozen with a dark expression on his face. I tilted my head and furrowed my brows in mock confusion. "Don't you think my costume looks nice, darling?" I could tell at this point he could see through my facade, but he played along anyway.

"You're not wearing that to the party, milaya," he stated with a sly grin, standing up and taking two steps toward me. I took one step back and resisted the urge to grin from excitement that my plan was working. I planned to keep it up as long as I could. Dimitri always rushed in the heat of the moment, but today I was determined to torture him slowly.

I pouted, "Why not? I think it's cute."

He took two more steps my way. "It is. That's why you're not wearing it. I don't want other people thinking about you the way _I'm_ think about you."

"And in exactly what kind of way are you thinking of me?"

He ran his hands through his hair as if I were giving him the biggest headache he'd ever had, but a small smile was peaking through. "Do you have any idea what goes through a man's head when you wear things like that?"

I casually leaned against his desk and spread my hands out across the surface. "Well I can't speak for the general population but I think I know what's going through your mind right now."

"I'm thinking that you should take that costume off. Right here. Right now."

I bit my lip to suppress a gasp as my stomach did a backflip. Still, I didn't move away as he got closer and closer to me. "Well, maybe I should get a second opinion." I jerked my thumb to the front door. "I'll go ask Jovan!" I joked.

Mentioning Jovan was apparently a big mistake. Dimitri's playful side disappeared and his features clouded in real anger. I realized then how much Dimitri disliked Jovan, despite his feigning indifference around others. If I'd said I was going to Eddie or even Ambrose, Dimitri would have laughed. "You're not going anywhere near him dressed like that."

 _Fuck!_ I thought. I needed to change the mood in here real quick. I closed the space between us and placed a hand on his chest. "You're right, comrade. He wouldn't know what to do with me if he saw this."

And then it didn't matter how angry he was with me, I knew I had succeeded in turning him on. He reached for me at the same time I reached for him. Before his lips even met mine he was lifting me up and backing me into the wall. "I can't believe you're wearing white, it's almost bridal." he mumbled in between kisses. I laughed at the not-so-subtle jab at how long it took me to come around and marry him.

"Shut up and take me to the bedroom," I ordered. He didn't waste any time in following through. He carried me with my legs wrapped firmly around him.

He left the bedroom door open, and I was about to scold him before I remembered we hadn't given anyone keys to our new place. Nobody could walk in on us anymore.

I pulled hard on his hair to let him feel how aroused I was, making him groan into my mouth. In response his grip on my back and shoulders got stronger. I was already worked up from teasing him, and his rough handling of me was only turning me on more.

He laid me on the bed with my heels still on and took a step back to lean over me, keeping his eyes trained on my chest. He studied me there, his hands lazily trailed the exposed skin of my legs and thighs. A shiver ran through me as his hands inched higher and higher on my thigh.

He met my gaze with hooded eyes. "I really like your costume, Roza," he said softly.

"Good," I breathed. "But the underwear is uncomfortable. Maybe you can adjust it for me?"

He grinned devilishly down at me. "You know I can't say no to you."

He leaned down and his lips were on mine... and his hand had finally found its goal. He started rubbing me in a motion that only he knew I loved, getting a loud but involuntary response from me. Like always, there was a moment where I forgot how to breathe as he lightly touched my most sensitive areas. He moved my underwear to one side and slid his fingers along me, coating me in my own wetness.

"Is that better?" He asked suggestively.

"Yes," I hissed, arching my back into his touch.

As if his hands weren't driving me crazy enough, his mouth moved down to my chest, sucking and kissing my nipples through the fabric of the lingerie. With his free hand he grabbed my hand and brought it down to the bulge in his jeans.

I squeezed- lightly- until he gasped against my skin. He lifted his face to be level with mine. "You're going to pay for that," he warned happily. I squirmed against his fingers on me. "What are you going to do to me, sir?" I asked innocently.

He smirked, and before he could come up with a good response, I started rubbing his erection through his jeans.

"Yoptel Mopsel," he grunted and lifted himself off of me to get his jeans off. I leaned up to lift his shirt, and he lifted his arms to let me undress him. Once he was fully naked, he climbed on top of me again, and pulled at the hem of my lingerie. I grabbed his hand and shook my head. He let me switch our positions so I was laying on top.

I placed one hand on Dimitri's shoulder and the other on his thigh behind me and grinded my hips into his growing erection. His hands gripped my hips and tried controlling my movements, but I stubbornly set a slower speed than he wanted. When he started moaning my name I stopped my grinding and got off the bed to stand before him. I pulled on his arm to guide him to the edge of the bed.

I kneeled in front of him, putting my face even with his cock. "Just sit back and enjoy the view, lyubov moya." I took him into my mouth. Well, some of him. Dimitri had been going down on me since we started dating, claiming he enjoyed it, but I was more hesitant and had only started reciprocating recently, so I was still fairly new at giving blowjobs.

I couldn't take all of him in my mouth without gagging, so I wrapped one hand around his cock and the other messaged his balls. Every time I went down on him, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I loved pleasing him, especially when he was focused on what I was doing to him, instead of him being distracted by pleasing me.

Dimitri tangled his hands in my hair, guiding my head as I bobbed on his cock.

I worked my way up and down for a long time, his groans urging me on. I hummed as I tried each time to put more of him in my mouth, until I didn't need my hand to rub him. When I could feel he was close to cumming, I tried to get off him, but his grip on my head kept him deep inside me. I glared at him as best as I could in my position. He looked down on me with a mischievous smile. "May I?" he asked.

I couldn't answer verbally so I showed my consent by going deeper on his cock. Dimitri swore and jerked his hips several times before cumming. I tried to swallow it, but some got on the corner of my mouth when he pulled his dick out. He rubbed his thumb on my mouth to wipe his cum off. "Thank you for my birthday present," he said softly, relaxed after his release.

He pulled me up on the bed with him and we layed down next to each other.

* * *

 **after.**

* * *

"Actually," I said, kicking off my heels, "we really do have a dinner reservation, but we've got time for a nap." I was actually tired and wanted to sleep, despite still being aroused.

Dimitri, who was still high from his orgasm, didn't even notice or care that I still hadn't gotten off, but I forgave him. I knew he would be willing and ready if I asked. He grinned and kissed my forehead. "A nap sounds perfect."

I had just snuggled into a position next to Dimitri when I saw a blinking light through the doorway in the living room.

I bolted into an upright position. "What's wrong?" Dimitri asked, squeezing my hand. I bit my lips as I kept my eyes trained on the living room door. My guardian instincts were on high alert.

"Rose?" Dimitri asked again. "It's nothing, comrade. I just thought I saw something."

I left his embrace to see if there was anything in the living room. I tossed on a robe and walked around the house several times, checking behind doors and curtains. As casually as I could manage, I went back to my half-asleep husband. "Happy birthday, Dimitri," I mumbled as I lay next to him, but I couldn't relax.

Instead, I got back out of bed. I put on clothes and stepped out into our backyard and called Karolina. I wanted to see a copy of a St. Basil's yearbook, and if any one of Dimitri's family knew more about Alexei, it would be her.

* * *

 **29th - sunday.**

* * *

I had to cancel the dinner reservation last night after I couldn't wake Dimitri up from his nap for the life of me. I desperately needed to talk to him, but I couldn't inside the house.

In a stroke of luck, Lissa's daytime meeting with the Alchemists was cancelled, so I was relieved of duty during the vampiric night and would get to sleep in my own bed tonight. It was the rare weekend that I hadn't been separated from my husband at all for work.

I even had time to go to the gym. The gym wasn't all that crowded tonight, as many guardians went to church on Sunday. The downside was that Jovan didn't go to church. He showed up a little after me and followed me around the gym every time I chose a new piece of equipment to work with, he even grabbed my water bottle and phone before I could and carried it for me.

He tried to start conversation multiple times, but it was hard to keep up a conversation when I had my headphones turned all the way up and had no intention of taking them off to talk to him. I escaped him for five minutes by going to the bathroom, but he was actually waiting for me when I went back into the main room.

Still, I was in a great mood when I got home, looking forward to round two with Dimitri behind closed doors, and I mixed together the ingredients for black bread. I couldn't cook a full meal, but I could at least make our favorite snack.

Dimitri, however, was not in the same mood. He slammed the front door when he came in and rushed to the kitchen. I already knew what he was going to say before he said it. "Why did Clara just tell me Jovan was all over you at the gym today?" His jaw was locked and his arms were crossed over his chest.

I suppressed a sigh. "Hello. Welcome home, honey. It's nice to see you too."

"Don't try to be funny, Rose."

I picked up the already mixed bowl and started mixing again to keep my hands busy. "Jovan was… being nice." I tried explaining optimistically.

"I don't want you talking to him, ever. I don't want you alone with him or anywhere near him."

"What the hell? I can't avoid him when he lives at court with us."

"Roza," his anger melted into something softer, but underneath that he was still explosive. "He's Alexei. Remember that St. Basil's student I told you about? Jovan is him." Dimitri sat in the chair opposite me and squeezed my hand tightly.

My breath caught in my throat. Dimitri was going to get us in a lot of trouble if I didn't get him to stop talking right now. I put the mixing bowl down and fixed Dimitri with a glare. "Dimitri you don't know what you're saying. Let's not talk about this now." Or here.

"Rose, it's gotta be him!" He shouted. I shook my head and scoffed, "You're just saying this because you're jealous." I hated myself for saying it, but I couldn't take it back.

"This has nothing to do with jealousy," he said condescendingly. He grabbed my water bottle and took a swig from it while he thought of what to say next. "I grew up with this man, I would know if it was him."

"They have different names!" I shouted. "They're from different parts of Russia! And It's been more than a decade since you've seen Alexei!"

Dimitri stood up again, pulling on his hair. "Don't be stupid, he could have made all of that stuff up!" he yelled. "Rose, he tried to kill our teacher for no reason! He told the guardians who captured him that he wanted to see if he could do it. He's a sociopath."

I chose to ignore the stupid comment, for now. "But Jovan is not Alexei! Alexei is in jail. Even if he broke out of jail why would he come to court, of all places. Do you realize how crazy that sounds?"

"Not as crazy as half the shit we've been through, Rose."

I rolled my head back and waved my hand in defeat. "Then go tell Hans. Do it!"

Dimitri threw up his hands and stormed out of the house. I put my head down on the table and counted to 15. Once I gave him a head start I ran to catch up with him and explain everything before I could let this come between my marriage.

* * *

 **30th - monday.**

* * *

I couldn't quite believe what I was seeing. I was prepared for a lot of things, but not this. I thought of how well both Dimitri and I had been sleeping recently, even though I have trouble falling asleep and Dimitri can't stay asleep. I thought of how he went to bed last night after our fight, no tossing or turning.

The gym was closing in ten minutes and dhampirs were rushing to grab their things and leave. Jovan had gone to the bathroom and left his duffle bag out by a bench.

Maybe it was because I felt a need to prove either Dimitri or myself wrong, but I didn't resist the urge to look through Jovan's bag. My stomach turned over, but it's not like what I was seeing was illegal. I shoved the items back into the bag and zipped it closed. I left before Jovan could come back and see me near his stuff.

This was all the proof I needed. Dimitri and I were right.

Alexei walked up to me. "Are you okay, Rose?" he smiled kindly. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"I'm fine, Jovan. Really."


	2. Chapter 2

**31st - tuesday - halloween.**

* * *

The party was just what I'd hoped it would be. The room was packed tight with bodies and the lights were dim and scarce for a spooky effect. The fog machine only made it that much harder to see. There was cotton spider webs covering the ceiling and walls, black and orange streamers and white ghosts hanging from the ceiling. The whole room looked like it was decorated by Virginia's best Soccer Moms. The music was loud enough to make it difficult to hear, but not many people were dancing.

Despite the corny decorations, there was no doubt that this was an adults only party. Colleagues that I had come to admire for their professionalism were shotgunning cans of beer. There were plenty of other women dressed just as scantily as me, which made me feel at ease. It's one thing to wear revealing clothing; it's a whole other thing when you're married. I was relieved that the other women also saw Halloween as the exception to that rule.

"Jello shot?" Meredith asked, coming up behind me. She handed me a small plastic cup with green jello. She wore a sexy nurse's uniform with fake blood splattered all over her, dark grey makeup and more blood covering her face. "Just one shot. Sexy zombie nurse?"

"Yep!" She did a twirl for me. "And you're a Western whore?"

I choked on the jello and struggled to reign in my coughing. "That's not what I would call it, but yes." I couldn't wait to tell Lissa was she called me and see her reaction. Meredith grinned; we were standing next to a blacklight so her teeth looked blue. "I've gotta pass out the shots, I'll find you later!" she promised and sauntered off with her tray of jello shots.

I walked around the ballroom, searching for Dimitri through the crowd. It shouldn't have been difficult with his height, but there were so many hanging pieces of decoration that it was hard to see anyone beyond five people in front of you. I couldn't find Dimitri, but I saw Eddie dip out to the bathrooms, wearing a pirate getup just like he said he would.

I gave up on finding Dimitri, telling myself he would find me, and went to the punch table. The snacks laid out all looked like various insects or body parts. The punch bowl had ping pong balls painted to look like eyes floating in it. I had to admit that I loved every cheesy detail.

Ambrose was standing near the photo booth, looking like a Greek god with a white bedsheet wrapped around him and a golden wreath on his head. He saw me and grinned, making a wild motion that I interpreted as him asking for punch. I grabbed an extra cup and pushed my way through the bodies toward him.

"Great costume!" he shouted in my ear when I got over to him. We were closer to the speakers over here. "Thank you!" we clinked our glasses together and drank. Ambrose made a face, "You grabbed me the non-alcoholic stuff, Rose." I laughed at him, "Sorry, but if you go over by Guardian Gonzales and Jones, I think they're going to do a chugging contest."

That perked his attention. Ambrose stood up straighter to look over people's heads, "Really? Where?" I jerked my head to my right, "Follow me." I led him over to the competition and even stayed with him for a while, cheering for him as he joined in the chugging contests, but never drinking myself.

While enjoying the drinking games, I found my husband. Or, rather, he found me. He came up behind me, wrapping his arms around me. "If I'd known this was your costume, I would have had you wear this for me on my birthday," he murmured in my ear.

I couldn't help the giggle that escaped me as I turned in his embrace to face him. He was wearing black slacks, dress shoes, a white button down shirt, and his fucking duster. I hit his chest with my fist, "You're not wearing a costume!" I accused.

He raised one eyebrow at me, "On the contrary, my dear. I'm a detective." He pulled a small notepad and pen out of his pocket and waved it at me. "It seemed fitting, with all the sleuthing we did."

I rolled my eyes and pulled him down for a light kiss. "Okay, you're forgiven."

"And you're sexy." I hit him again, lighter this time.

We walked around the party and mingled for a bit. I relished the feeling of showing off my incredible husband. Our jobs frowned upon too much PDA, and I knew it made Dimitri uncomfortable, but tonight was an exception. I couldn't get enough of the simple touches on each others arms and backs that we did casually in front of our colleagues. I also knew that Dimitri felt bad for our fight the other day and was trying to be extra sweet to me.

When Dimitri was listening to a story from Ambrose that I'd heard before, I checked my phone for notifications.

Dimitri: I found my phone! It was under the couch cushion.

The message was sent at 8:19, and it was only 8:25. I peeked at my husband, who was engrossed in Ambrose's, and obviously didn't text me 6 minutes ago when I'd been with him the whole time. I chewed on my lip and texted back.

Me: Great! Why aren't you at the party?

Dimitri: Didn't want to be there... Come home and spend the rest of the night with me?

I pinched Dimitri's arm. A signal that I needed to talk to him without alerting anyone around us. Once I showed him the texts he grabbed my hand and we searched for Eddie and Hans.

Let me explain.

On Saturday I found the camera in our living room. I wasn't sure how much it recorded, but it probably caught everything that I did to Dimitri on his birthday. I pretended that I didn't see the camera and went about life like normal when I was in the house. I called Karolina to talk about my suspicions. She sent me pictures from Dimitri's yearbooks of Alexei, and sure enough, Jovan was identical to a younger Alexei.

Obviously, with a camera in the house, I couldn't tell Dimitri right there and tip off the person who put the camera there. I had to act like nothing was wrong, which made us fight on Sunday. When I ran after Dimitri and told him everything that had happened, we went straight to Hans. We discovered that "Jovan" doesn't exist. Hans didn't know him by name, and when we looked further there was no record of him coming to court at all.

We wouldn't alert Alexei and make him act out, so we kept up the charades at home. That was before… Yesterday I found Dimitri's phone and sleeping pills in his gym bag.

With the information we had, and our feeling that Alexei was planning something, we had to make a plan of our own, which included telling Eddie and Hans everything. We were certain that Alexei was targeting me, though we didn't know why. Last night, Dimitri made a fake phone call to Christian about leaving Court on Halloween to have a meeting with the Alchemists. We thought if Alexei thought I was alone he would make his move. We were right.

Once we found Eddie dressed as a pirate, he brought us to Hans, who was hiding in the corner of the ballroom. I didn't think he would be at the party at all, let alone dressed as a zombie. His shirt was artfully torn to shreds and smeared with fake blood. I wanted to find the humor in all this, but the situation was weighing down on me.

"So what are you going to do?" he asked between sips from a red Solo cup after we showed him the texts. He wasn't challenging me, but giving me the reins over this. He was trusting me to make the right decision.

I self-consciously brushed my hands down my skirt. "I think I should play along. I should go home and see what he wants."

"Then that's what we'll do. You go in like he wants you to. I'll pull two guardians from the party right now, so Castile, Belikov, myself and two more guards will be on the perimeter of your house should anything go wrong. Are you sure the camera is still in your house?"

"Yes, it's been there for at least four days now."

"Okay. What I'm about to ask you is dangerous, but important. I need you to get him to talk. Get Alexei to confess for the camera and we can use it as evidence."

I took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay. I'll do it."

* * *

 **later.**

* * *

I went to unlock the door, but it was already open.

I flipped the switch but nothing happened. I tried again several times to no avail. I took a step out onto the porch to glance at both of my neighbor's houses; their lights were on in several windows. The power had been cut to my house only.

"Comrade?" I called out softly. "I think the power's out."

I heard the click of the gun's hammer before I saw his shadow. "Step into the house and close the door, Rose."

Alexei stepped toward me, his gun aimed at my chest. I lifted up my hands slowly in a sign of surrender. "Jovan," I said. "What are you doing?"

He narrowed his eyes in disgust. "Don't play dumb, Rose. You know who I am." He stepped behind me to close and lock the door, then grabbed my elbow to lead me to the couches. I wanted to fight back, but he had the upper hand at the moment, so I remained docile.

"Alexei," I spoke calmly, "Don't do anything you'll regret, okay?"

"Regret?" he laughed. "I won't regret this." He sat opposite me in an armchair and made himself comfortable. The armchair he was in faced the front door, with his back to the kitchen. He was wearing the typical guardian black and white uniform.

"I've been planning for this, Rose." I knew that Alexei wouldn't be able to help but talk about his master plan. The favor I was doing for Hans wouldn't be hard to accomplish. Someone like Alexei would want to brag.

"Dimitri and I went to school together, but you already knew that, didn't you?"

"Yes," I said. "I know that you tried to kill your teacher." The tears streaming down my face were real, but if anyone ever asked I would say I was acting.

"I also killed one of the guardians, but they never found his body, so nobody knew that was me." he grinned. "And the guardian that went missing three weeks ago. He was practice."

I swallowed hard. "Practice for what?"

"For you."

It was silent for a long time. Alexei was studying me, smirking at my powerlessness.

"And you're telling me this because I won't be alive to tell anyone else," I stated.

"Exactly," he smiled indulgently.

"Why me?" I asked.

"Because I've heard the stories about how great you are. 'Rose Hathaway killed countless Strigoi before she even graduated. Rose Hathaway killed the queen and ran away from court. Rose Hathaway didn't kill the queen and returns to court. Rose Hathaway marries the infamous Strigoi-turned-dhampir Dimitri Belikov. Rose Hathway becomes the youngest guardian on the queen's guard.' You're a legend, milaya." He sneered the last part. I ignored the nickname Dimitri uses for me around the house; it only proved that he'd been watching us.

"So you want to kill me because-"

"-because no one has been able to kill you yet. I want to be the one to do that. You see, I've been watching you for a while," he pointed to the red blinking dot next to the TV. There was no point in telling him I already knew all this, I needed the admission to come from his own will. "You've given me some great footage, Rose. Dimitri's birthday might be my favorite home video." I tried not to gag. I had to bite my tongue from lashing out at him. "I've been putting sleeping pills in your water so I could break in during the day," he continued. "Originally I was going to kill you in your sleep, but since it's Halloween, this seemed like more fun."

I wasn't sure what Hans was looking for, but that is a confession if I've ever heard one. He leaned forward so we were mere inches apart and I could feel his breath on my face. "Are you having fun, Rose?"

You would think that living with a zen master for years would help my impulse control, but that's simply not the case.

I punched Alexei in the face while my other hand reached for his wrist. In his shock, he dropped the gun, so I kicked it out of his reach. He leapt up from the seat and tried going for my face, and I had to release my hold on his wrist or get punched.

We danced in the living room for a while in combat. My loose skirt actually made kicking easier, though I'm sure it didn't give off a flattering image. Alexei got the better of me when I tried running for the kitchen to get out the back door. Before I got two steps in, he grabbed my leg and pulled it back so hard I fell forward and hit my head on the corner of the coffee table with all my body weight. I cried out from the impact, my hand going straight to my left temple.

When I pulled my hand away, there was blood. My vision was swimming, and I saw three Alexeis as he loomed over me. I lay sprawled in front of him, too delirious to move. I couldn't even feel my legs, and fearing the head injury had knocked me out for good."Rose Hathaway, murdered in her own home at 23." He chuckled, "Tragic, isn't it?"

My only response was a moan. My eyelids were getting heavier.

He went into the kitchen and brought back a steak knife. "You may be a legend, but you can still be killed like a human."

I looked up, which up for me meant looking into the kitchen upside down, and I prayed that the guardian's outside would get sick of waiting for my signal and take matters into their own hands.

He got on his knees and pressed the knife to my throat, the same way I had done to countless Strigoi with a stake. "I'm going to take my time," he warned excitedly. I knew that my only chance of survival now was to stall him.

"How did you know that Dimitri would be gone tonight?" I slurred, amazed that I could speak when my mind felt so sluggish. My vision was getting darker and darker.

Alexei leaned back slightly and smirked. "Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news," he smirked, "but I know you and Dimitri have been fighting about me. You so gallantly came to my defense," he laid a hand over his heart as if he was touched by the fact. "Dimitri is on a business trip with Lord Ozera tonight. I'm sorry he didn't tell you and stood you up at the Halloween party."

He pulled Dimitri's phone out of his pocket and waved it at me triumphantly. "But look how fast you came running back when you thought he wanted to spend time with you." He gave me a pitying look, and I didn't have it in me to come up with a good response.

I didn't have it in me to do anything, really. My breathing was becoming more shallow, and I couldn't think of another question to divert him before the knife was back on my neck. Just then I saw movement in the kitchen behind Alexei. I calmly looked away before I drew his attention to it.

Tears were streaming uncontrollably down my face from the pain in my head; though Alexei probably thought it was from fear. To be fair, I was pretty damned afraid at this point. Alexei pressed the knife deeper into my neck, and I could feel the blood trickle down the side of my neck.

"You know," he whispered like it was a cherished secret. "Last night I was thinking I would have to kill Dimitri just to get to you. I was ready to kill him, too. And I'll be ready to kill him when he comes back home."

"Does that mean you're ready now?" I said, but my throat was clogged by some mystery liquid so it came out more like a gurgle. I subsequently had a coughing fit.

He furrowed his brows at the odd question. "Of course, I'm always ready."

"No, you're not." I argued, my voice more clear this time. He gave me a dirty look so I explained. "You got caught before, you were arrested."

"And obviously that hasn't stopped me. Has it?" He dragged the knife down to my collarbone as punishment for taunting him, and I winced in pain. The cut didn't feel that deep, but there would be a scar.

"If you kill me, Dimitri will kill you," I threatened.

Alexei outright laughed this time. "Dimitri won't be home until tomorrow, and I'll be long gone by then. It's a shame though, that I won't get to see his reaction when he sees your dead body."

"That's because she won't be dead."

Just then Dimitri came out of the kitchen and shot at Alexei. Everything happened so fast and I didn't see where the bullet went, but Alexei slumped over and fell half on me. The knife clattered to the ground next to his limp hand. Dimitri rushed over and pulled Alexei off of me. I heard a soft groan escape Alexei, so he was still alive.

The other guardian's came rushing into the room after Dimitri, immediately sizing up the scene. A feeling of calm came over me as they took Alexei from Dimitri, and called an ambulance for me.

Dimitri sat down and propped my head on his knee. "How do you feel, Roza?" he asked, brushing wet strands of hair out of my face. I shook my head slowly. I was so out of it that I didn't try to respond verbally.

He nodded in understanding. I could see the concern in his eyes, and I was concerned too. I've never lost feeling in my legs from head trauma, but it couldn't be a good thing.

"The ambulance will be here soon, and I already called Sonya," he reassured me. With Adrian and Lissa on meds to keep down Spirit, Sonya was the only active healer in our social group. We always said we wouldn't use her for healings, but we usually ended up calling her in dire situations anyway.

"Alexei will be taken care of, you did great. Don't worry about anything, milaya. You're going to get through this." Dimitri's voice was warm and loving. It would have made me feel better if the physical pain wasn't so strong. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the other guardians stop fussing over Alexei and stand up.

"Is he dead?" I asked, the question took all of my energy and concentration to ask it.

"Yes," Hans answered, annoyed. "Belikov, I told you I wanted him alive."

"Sorry," Dimitri said, but he didn't sound sorry at all, "I must've missed his arm and hit his heart." It was a lame excuse and Hans and I knew it. I coughed out a mirthless laugh.

"And comrade?" I asked, even though my eyelids had never been heavier.

"Yeah?" he asked, concern written all over him.

"Next year I'm not letting you off so easy on half-assing the costume." I closed my eyes, and drifted off to the sound of Dimitri's laughter and the ambulance siren in the distance.

* * *

 **And there it is! Fin!**

 **If you liked this story, please review/favorite and check out my other stories!**

 **-thefangirldiaries**


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